It had been a good day for Atlas, and an even better night. His dream of conquering the post-apocalyptic wasteland was steadily transforming into reality.
‘Only two more surrounding territories stood between us and control over the entire continent.‘
The thought of what might happen, once the continent was conquered filled his brain with anticipation.
‘We never conquered all the territories within a blue-ringed continent last time I was here. I don’t know what will happen. Whatever it is, it’s going to be good,‘ Atlas thought.
From the stories of the Cell Block 21 crafters and laborers that he had absorbed into his ranks, Atlas knew his next step had to be strategic. A troll dungeon lurked nearby, its presence a threat that needed to be neutralized. And then there was the ghoul-infested dungeon of Cell Block 21—a dungeon that was ripe for picking since Cell Block 21 was razed.
But first, there were more immediate matters to address. Atlas needed to summon the Fort Bone leadership. The next phase of their conquest required careful planning and, as always, the right people for the job.
“Good morning, guys,” Atlas greeted Olivia and Alexander as they approached. “You did a great job with the alliance with the Canucks. Now, I need you to take a party of people to see if you can get the same kind of alliance with Tractors and Freedom. They must be feeling pretty vulnerable right now after that attack by Cell Block 21, and could be looking for allies.”
“How many people should we bring?” Olivia asked, always practical and to the point.
“You’re the diplomat. I’ll let you and Alexander work that out,” Atlas replied, trusting their judgement.
“Sounds good,” Olivia nodded, turning to Alexander as they walked away to discuss their approach.
‘‘‘
“So, what do you think?” Olivia asked as they moved out of earshot.
“Well,” Alexander drawled, “never hurts to show up at a barn raising with a whole group of strong men.”
Olivia shot him a skeptical look. “I don’t know if that makes the right impression. It’s a diplomatic mission, not an invasion. We want allies, not to scare them off.”
Alexander grinned, flexing his biceps. “Yeah, but showing off your big guns before you talk is always a good idea.”
Olivia sighed. “Why don’t we compromise? We’ll bring a whole group of men, but let’s have them not armored up, just in their casual clothes. And when I say casual, Alexander, I hope you pick out guys—and girls—that will appeal to the sensibilities of these people we’re going to visit.”
Alexander chuckled. “Hey, just because it’s Tractors and Freedom doesn’t make them all stupid rednecks. It just makes them damn good people. Seriously, Atlas only had us bring white people on the decoy mission, but there are plenty of non-racist rednecks.”
Olivia shook her head with a smile. “Alright, pick who you want, but just make sure our damn good people get us the alliance we need. No hotheads.”
‘Definitely not bringing Stu,‘ thought Alexander, ‘Hank should be free.‘
Olivia and Alexander with their group teleported into the Tractors and Freedom camp, a wide-open settlement that had a rugged, homestead-like feel. People were busy tending to fields, repairing the broken gate, and generally going about their lives without much fuss.
“Who’s there!” a guard at the teleport zone yelled, they had just been attacked. There was no way they were letting their guard down.
“Hold your horses!” Alexander said, raising his hands with a disarming grin.
“We’re from Fort Bone and come in peace!” Olivia added, her voice steady but calm.
Daryl, the leader of Tractors and Freedom, greeted them with a wary nod as they approached, arms crossed over his chest. “I’m Daryl. What do you want?”
Olivia smiled, unfazed. “We’re here to propose an alliance.”
Daryl’s brow furrowed, suspicion clear in his eyes. “Alliance, huh? Sounds like a fancy word for ‘takeover.’”
Alexander chuckled, shaking his head. “Take over? Nah, man. Atlas already has his hands full with Fort Bone. We’re offering something else. Think of it like a Livestock association back home.”
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Daryl’s frown deepened. “The Livestock association? You got me confused with some cow farmer?”
“Sorry, I assumed you were a farmer too. Like me, when I was back on Earth.”
“Well, I am, but horses, not cows.”
“Gotcha.”
Alexander leaned in a little, lowering his voice conspiratorially. “Look, we’re not here to boss you around. Your land, your rules. We just help with defense. If Cell Block 21 or anyone else comes knocking, you holler, and we portal in.”
Olivia jumped in, her tone soothing. “Exactly. You stay in control, Daryl. No one’s taking away your freedom. All we ask is the occasional collaboration—trade, intel, and a united front against bigger threats. We’re stronger together.”
Daryl uncrossed his arms, scratching his chin as he mulled it over. “I don’t much like owing anyone. Freedom’s what we value around here.”
“Which is why we aren’t asking for any of it,” Olivia said, holding his gaze. “You keep what’s yours. We just make sure no one else tries to take it.”
There was a long pause, the air thick with tension. Finally, Daryl exhaled, a hint of a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Alright, you’ve got yourself a deal. But you cross me, and I’ll make sure you regret it.”
Alexander grinned, giving a mock salute. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
Olivia smiled warmly. “Welcome to the alliance, Daryl.”
‘Making deals with honest rednecks sure is easy.‘
Olivia and Alexander exchanged a glance, their mission accomplished.
“Now you all want to stick around for some beer and bbq?” Daryl asked.
“Hell yeah,”Alexander responded enthusiastically.
Over their dinner, Olivia explained the details of how the Overlord functioned. And how Tractors and Freedom would need to pump in some coins for protection.
‘These Fort Bone fellas seem alright. Gotta make it over to check out that Wasted tavern that Alexander was talking about.‘
Daryl had begun the day responding to a shitty attack, but with this new alliance with Fort Bone, the day ended well.
‘‘‘‘‘‘‘
POV : FORT BONE
As the citizens of Fort Bone finalized their plans, Atlas watched them from a distance, feeling the weight of leadership settle on his shoulders once more.
‘This empire-building thing will be tough, but with my team by my side, the empire may just be within reach,‘ Atlas thought. ‘If this was a movie there would be an epic soundtrack playing while I looked over the town majestically.‘
Atlas turned his attention to Noi and Amber, who were deeply involved in the development of Fort Bone. "Hey, ladies," he began, "how are we doing with the crafters and the buildings?"
Amber, ever the diligent overseer, responded first. "We're actually doing pretty well. Buildings are being bought from the vending machines. The only ones that we aren’t making available for purchase are the private residences. We're selling those tokens ourselves privately. The auctions for the private residences are going live tonight, so that should be exciting."
Noi nodded in agreement. "The crafters are doing really well too. They're happy to be selling their bone armor, bone cutlery, and bits from the demon dog hides."
"Good stuff," Atlas said, satisfied with the progress.
Next, Atlas turned to Wilfredo and Isabella, who had been overseeing the hunting and scouting efforts. "Wilfredo, Isabella, how are the hunting and scouting teams?"
Wilfredo took the lead, his voice steady and confident. "With the information we have from the leftovers of Cell Block 21, and Alexander’s scouting, we now know the location of the ghoul dungeon. Isabella is planning on taking out the main force for that."
"Count me in for that," Atlas said, his eyes lighting up with excitement.
"Great," Isabella replied. "As for the bandit attacks, they're sporadic. We don't see a lot of them, but we do hear about them from visitors. A lot of folks are portaling into Fort Bone and then hunting in the outlying areas since their own settlements are being overrun with demon dogs."
"As we thought," Atlas remarked. "Those demon dogs are great for bringing in business. And what about the safety of our own patrol groups?"
"Not a problem," Isabella assured him. "As long as we send them out in groups of at least ten, we're good. We also have enough people for a twenty-person dungeon raid, no issue there."
"Even though our original SFB Portal Crusher team is getting smaller?" Atlas asked, his tone turning somber. "God keep you safe in heaven, Kingsley and Evalynh."
Isabella gave a respectful nod. "Our team of warriors is actually getting bigger. Everyone is starting to gel together, and we've had a lot of training sessions for the newbies."
"Great," Atlas said, feeling a surge of pride in his team. "All right, everybody, gear up and get moving. After a quick chat with John, we're all going to head out and tackle our separate missions."
He then turned to John. "John, where are we with the people and the safety?"
John, who had been meticulously tracking the influx of new residents, gave a thoughtful reply. "We're doing pretty well on that front. The group has expanded quite a bit in the last two to three days, as you know. Morale isn't quite as tight as it was because of all the new faces. We're getting a lot of visitors, which is great for the coin flow. However, security-wise, we could use more coverage. We haven't had any major incidents yet thanks to the friend/foe system, but it's only a matter of time before something happens, and we might not be able to respond quickly enough."
Atlas pondered for a moment. "I've got a thought about that. I saw something interesting in the upgraded vending machines this morning. I think I'd like to give it a try. I'll show you after the meeting."
The meeting ended with a sense of purpose, each member of the leadership team prepared to carry out their tasks with precision and determination. As Atlas prepared to speak privately with John, he thought, ‘This feels like the beginning of an epic movie, a part one of a trilogy, like something that should have an epic soundtrack.‘
Fort Bone was thriving, and with every decision, they were one step closer to securing their empire in the wasteland.
https://suno.com/song/c9afde73-b50a-4b42-b165-9c76e7ba3fbd
(This is the instrumental song that Atlas was thinking in his head while looking majestically over Fort Bone.)